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theses

It is a complex task to educate children and appropriately measure achievement even under ideal circumstances. However, attempts to do so in desperately poor urban environments must consider the many variables that impact learning if we are to help children succeed. Even where there is strong will to make things better, there also may be an urgency to produce immediate results that makes assessment of the big picture or broad effects difficult. This case study follows the first four years of a school turnaround model in Newark, NJ. The study goes beyond student test scores to observe and document efforts to change the school environment, impact teacher/staff/parent attitudes and skills, and assess the reform effort in the words of those who participated. A teacher–led group promised to turn around one of the state’s lowest performing and most impoverished schools. The founders, all teachers and former Teach For America alumni, created an organization based on best practices and dedicated to the success of neighborhood children. They named their educational non–profit B.R.I.C.K.—Building Responsible Intelligent Creative Kids—which is both its name and its mission. Mixed methods of data collection included the analysis 200 parent surveys, 40 teacher surveys, 40 interviews with teachers, staff and parents; archives and documents; and field observations.

Results suggest that when sustained focus on early literacy instruction and achievement is accomplished, more students learn to read at a higher level of competency in spite of extreme factors working against their success (e.g., poverty, transiency, chronic absenteeism, special needs). That said, administrators should be wary of over–interpreting single year test scores after implementing major reform, because complex factors can influence a school in a single academic year. Norm–referenced and criterion–referenced student achievement data, lessons learned by administrators, teachers, and staff, challenges, implications for best practices and resulting recommendations are presented. In an era of loss of local control of education and increased emphasis on accountability, the present study of a neighborhood–based, teacher–led school “turnaround” model provides potential guidance and inspiration to practitioners, policy makers, parents, and local citizens.

ETD_11172

doi:10.7282/t3-bd6b-qd08

Ph.D.

Includes bibliographical references

ETD doctoral

The author owns the copyright to this work.